Ordinary Day
by Word of a Sayre
Summary: A secret place in the Castle seems to bring out the love in anyone. Crow takes Malen on a little trip, and Malen's opinion of him changes slighlty. Fluffy, chaste romance. [CrowMalen]


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Author's Note: Man, I love Crow/Malen. ^_^ Here's a simple little songfic one-shot I thought of the moment I heard this song and thought of Seventh Tower. Yeah, Crow's rather OOC. but I suppose he'd become more of a sweetie after the books ended if he DID live, 'cuz, y'know, FREEEEDDOM and all. ^-^ I like Sweetie-Crow best anyway.  
  
AU: Crow's not dead (this takes place after the books). Bwahaha. like I'd let him stay dead, anyway. =P I love him too much.

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Disclaimer: I don't own the characters (Garth Nix does), nor do I own the song (Vanessa Carton does). Both are geniuses far beyond me. 

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Ordinary Day

__

Songfic to Vanessa Carlton's "Ordinary Day"

-Word of a Sayre-

~*~

~*Just a day, just an ordinary day. . .  
Just trying to get by.*~

The Hall of the Crones was dreary late in the day. 

Malen sat, alone, on the fluffy bed, reading an ancient text the Mother Crone had assigned her to study independently. She was, after all, still a young Crone with much to learn. 

Still, she sighed and found her mind wandering. It was nearing evening, and soon the Castle would grow quiet and the other Crones would return. But for now, she was alone--the one solitary Crone allowed to do naught but study.

In boredom, her eyes drifted from the text and scanned the dim room. She wished there was something else to do, or else someone to talk to. . .

There was.

With a yelp, Malen realized that Crow was standing in the doorway, a grin on his face. 

  
~*_Just a boy, just an ordinary boy.  
But he was looking to the sky.*~_

She slammed the book quickly as her sudden shock subsided into suspicion. "Crow? What are you doing here? You shouldn't--"

"Took you long enough to realize I was standing there, Crone," Crow said with a smirk, stepping up beside the bed and folding his arms. 

Without losing her composure, Malen looked up at him with her hands folded neatly across the book in her lap. "And just how long may that have been?"

"Long enough," Crow muttered, "to know that you're bored."

She started to protest that she was indeed doing research, but Crow shook his head. "Listen. There's something I'd like to show you, if you don't mind leaving your extremely interesting book for a while. . ."

Malen shook her head. "I'm sorry, but--"

"It won't take long. I promise."

She regarded him silently for a moment, wondering at the calm, collected look on his face. Crow didn't normally act like this. in fact, he was rather solitary, even after the Underfolk had been freed. Though he did spend time with Malen, he was rarely this ambitious or talkative. But she couldn't say she didn't like the change. . . she liked it when Crow smiled. 

"Alright," she replied, reluctance and nervousness seeping into her voice. "However, if the other Crones return before I do, you do realize--"

"They won't." Crow said. "Follow me."

  
~*_And as he asked if I would come along,  
I started to realize that everyday he finds   
just what he's looking for.  
Like a shooting star, he shines.*~_

The hallways of the lower Violet levels were already beginning to empty, and even so, Crow led Malen down a less-traveled hall. She followed him quietly, however, though she did question his intentions.

Naturally, she still worried that she would be reprimanded upon her return, and she said to the figure before her, "Crow. . . this may not be a good time. You may show me upon another night, when I am not supposed to be studying."

"No, you've already started. No use turning back now," the boy looked over his shoulder at her, quirking a brow. "And if you did go back, you'd never come out again. Let go for a moment. I promise you won't get in trouble."

His words confused Malen, but she complied.

  
~*_He said, "Take my hand,  
live while you can!  
Don't you see your dreams _

right in the palm of your hand?"*~

Crow briskly let Malen to the end of the hall, and there he slowed and turned to look at her. "Here we are."

It was then Malen decided that Crow had simply lost his mind, for they were at a dead end, save for a window at the far wall. An insane Crow would certainly explain his behavior. "This is the end of the corridor, Crow."

"Dark," Crow muttered, though his tone was sarcastic. "Is it? I suppose we'll have to. . ." he stepped back and pushed open the window behind him. "Go outside."

Malen's eyes went wide. "You _have_ lost your mind! I will not."

But Crow took her by the arm, forcefully but still gently, and said, "It's alright." Something in his voice was reassuring, and his touch was soft, his fingers warm. Malen nearly blushed, but cast her eyes down. "Alright, then."

  
~*_And as he spoke, he spoke ordinary words  
although they did not feel, no.!  
For I felt what I had not felt before.  
You'd swear those words could heal.*~_

Crow was the first to leap out the window, and Malen let out an uncharacteristic yelp as he vanished from view. But her shock was calmed when Crow poked his head back over the windowsill, frowning in confusion. "It drops. The footholds are down a bit."

Malen nodded, but didn't move. Would she fall? Malen wasn't trained to climb and jump and scale buildings like Shield Maidens were. She felt weak and frail, and took a step back.

The boy regarded her for a minute. Then he pulled himself back up to the windowsill and knelt there, holding out his hand. "Don't worry, you won't fall. Not when I'm right here."

She tentatively reached for him, and as her fingers touched his, she felt the same warmth and comfort she had before. At this, she found it in her to smile, bringing one foot up to the windowsill as Crow held her hand, leading her gently down. . .

It wasn't a steep drop at all, nor a terribly far one. Malen, relieved, let Crow jump back down first, and then she followed. . . and, in the cliché of clichés, stumbled a bit upon landing. Crow grabbed her quickly and steadied her, holding her close. Malen stared at him, suddenly unable to move, entranced by his gaze upon hers. 

  
~*_And as I looked up into those eyes,  
his vision borrows mine.  
And to know he's no stranger,  
for I feel I've held him for all of time_.*~

"Are you alright?" Crow asked, and once again he was smiling that gentle, almost playful smile. 

She could almost feel his heartbeat; he'd caught her at such a close angle. Malen's hands were on his shoulders and her eyes were locked on his face. She felt strange. Oh, she'd never felt such a thing. as a Crone, she'd felt the emotions of others whilst she was in circle with them, but never had she sensed something like this. It made her smile and tremble in anticipation, and slowly she pulled away. "Yes. . . yes, I suppose."

He nodded and let his arms fall as well, though he still kept one arm linked through hers. Crow couldn't have her falling, after all. "It's up here. . . to the left a bit, and then straight on towards the Veil."

"The Veil?"

"We won't go that far," Crow reassured her. "Just below it."

He led her along the violet stones of the Tower--this was obviously a secret passage he'd discovered, perhaps during his exploits as a Freefolk, or maybe even recently. Nevertheless, Malen found herself laughing as she jumped from stone to stone, Crow's hand still linked within hers.

  
~*_And he said, "Take my hand,  
live while you can!  
Don't you see your dreams_

right in the palm of your hand?*~

They reached a platform, or rather, a jutting area of stone that protruded from the castle wall. How it got there was a mystery, but it was just large enough for both of them to sit down side by side and hang their legs over. Malen's dress brushed her ankles and she was cautious, but forgot her fear soon enough.

"Well, what do you think?" Crow asked. The light was dimming around them, and the Veil darkened overhead. Beneath them, throughout the expanse of the Castle, Sunstones were flickering in the dark, some bright and some merely twinkling, barely visible. The closest visible Sunstones were Violet, and a distance down some Indigo flashes lined the walls of some chamber, and then Blue, extending all the way down to Red, far in the darkness below. 

From their perch on the walls of the Violet Tower, Crow and Malen could see the entire Castle. The Crystal Wood was off to the east, sparkling with all the colors of the Towers, and Malen's eyes widened in wonder. "Oh, Crow, it's beautiful."

He merely smiled. "There is a legend I read of this place once. That's how I found it, actually. . . it said that Rornir and Danir [1] proclaimed their love in this very spot, overlooking all of the Castle."

Malen looked out into the darkness, her eyes shining. 

  
~*_Please come with me.  
see what I see.  
Touch the stars, for time will not flee.  
Time will not flee.  
Can you see?*~_

"I never. . . I never saw these kinds of things at home. On the Ice, I mean. . ." Malen spoke softly, looking down to the ground, far below. 

Crow looked at her, inconspicuously moving closer. "Of course you didn't. There's nothing like this out there. . . well, not that I'd know, but--"

"It's alright," Malen smiled. "There isn't. . ."

"I'm glad you came, though," Crow said. "I didn't think you would at first. . . because you'd act too much like a Crone and fear doing anything else."

"What?"

"Sometimes. . ." Crow began, but seemed to struggle with the words. "You don't seem. . . like yourself. You're just a Crone, and you don't think there's anything else for you. . . but there is, Malen. I. . . I'm trying to get you to realize that, I suppose. . ."

The young Crone only looked at him. Was it such a crime to act like what she was? What she was born to be? And what did this boy know. . .? She was truly happy being a Crone, and acting as a Crone would. . . wasn't she?

__

No, Malen's thoughts told her, _you want more. You want that freedom others have. You envy them._

~*Just a dream, just an ordinary dream.  
as I wake in bed.  
And the boy, that ordinary boy.  
Or was it all in my head?*~

"I. . . I suppose you're right," Malen began, sadness in her voice. "I do want more, sometimes, but I am a Crone. But. . . thank you for bringing me here. I think. . . it will help. I'll try to be better. . . this is beautiful." She looked at him and smiled. "Thank you. . . but, why did you bring me? You could have brought Tal. . ."

Completely taking that the wrong way, Crow stared at her, a shocked expression on his face. Flustered, he cried, "What? Tal. . .? But he's not. . . we're not. . . augh--why do you think I'd bring him?" [2]

Malen, taken aback, blinked. "Well, he's your closest friend, I thought. . . oh!" Suddenly she realized what Crow was implying, and, despite herself, a blush slowly crept across her delicate features. "That's not what I meant! But then. . . you brought me. . ."

Even Crow was a bit red then. 

~*_Did he ask if I would come along?  
It all seemed so real.  
But as I looked to the door,  
I saw that boy standing there with a deal.*~_

A Crone is not to love, Malen thought. _A Crone is solitary, knowing only the companionship of her fellow Crones, never a lover._

But Crow was looking at her then, and Malen felt her heart pounding and her neck tingling in anticipation. What was this? Like a magnet, she felt herself leaning towards him slowly, and a thousand thoughts, questions, and confessions threatened to burst through her lips. She longed to tell him _something_, but. . . what. . .?

Crow was leaning towards her as well, his eyes soft and kind. Malen stared at him, unable to look away. 

_What's he doing? I. . . I can't do this. . . a Crone is never to love. . ._

Her lips parted slightly, and Crow closed his eyes. Malen followed suit almost unconsciously, knowing what was going to happen but unable and unwilling to avoid it.

. . ._He's going to. . ._

Crow kissed her gently on the lips, only for one blissful, chaste moment, and then drew back.

. . ._kiss me_. 

  
~*_And he said, "Take my hand,  
live while you can!  
Don't you see your dreams _

right in the palm of your hand?*~

And then everything suddenly made sense, and all of Malen's Crone-related worries simply slipped away. She was not a Crone now--she was merely a girl with someone she loved. Malen's heart slowed and her breathing became even, and despite what Crow had done, she felt strangely calm. The light from the Sunstones seemed even more beautiful as they flashed in the distance, but Malen hardly noticed them.

"Crow," she whispered, and then he kissed her once more. Malen closed her eyes and returned the kiss, one hand cupping his cheek gingerly. Crow's arms wrapped around her shoulders and drew her closer, protective and loving.

When they parted, Crow stared at her, eyes sparkling in the Sunstones' light. Malen smiled at him, tears of joy in her eyes, and leaned into him.

__

~*Just a day, just an ordinary day.  
Just trying to get by.*~

Crow held her close, one hand entwined in her silver-blonde hair. "You're not completely a Crone," he whispered, and nuzzled her cheek gently. Malen smiled and nestled into his embrace. "And that's why I love you, Malen," 

Malen closed her eyes and sighed, relaxing in his arms. The world around her was dream-like and beautiful, but that really didn't matter. Nothing did--not even returning to the Castle and the other Crones. No, they would be angry, but Malen would get over it. All that mattered then was Crow and his beautiful eyes, and all the love he gave her.

She fell asleep there atop the Violet tower, protected in Crow's gentle arms.

  
~*_Just a boy, just an ordinary boy.  
But he was looking to the sky.*~_

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~*Fin*~ 

[1] Yeah, this is a reference to a fic I haven't even posted yet. _; You should know who Danir is, and Rornir is an original character I made up. No, it's not Ferek's pet Crow from my other fic Ferek's Story (even though I did use that same name. . . just to be tricky). =P

[2] Ahah, sorry, that was my fault. X3 Crow and Tal, eh? Interesting thought, that one. . .*cough* . . . *shifty eyes*

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End Note: Whee. I haven't written Romance in forever. FOREVER. *dies* Well, that was kinda fun to write. Cute. very cute. I love Crow when he's cute. =D Review?! *beg*


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